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“Constantine has been a whipping boy for a long time, and still is today. In popular culture (Dan Brown, Da Vinci Code), among bestselling historians (James Carroll, Constantine’s Sword), and among theologians (Stanley Hauerwas, John Howard Yoder, and their followers), his name is identified with tyranny, antisemitism, hypocrisy, apostasy, and heresy. He was a hardened power-politician who never really became Christian, a hypocrite who harnessed the energy of the Church for his own …

“A historical myth is a widely held interpretation of historical events that is believed, not for its veracity, but because it explains the past in a way that somehow satisfies the worldview of those who believe it. Myth is not simply the result of ignorance or misunderstanding; it is believed because people wish, in spite of all countervailing evidence, to believe it.” - Thomas S. Freeman and Susan DoranIt is not shocking that Catholics have been vilified and scapegoated throughout …

In 1964, Pope Paul VI issued the Second Vatican Council’s “Decree on Ecumenism,” called Unitatis Redintegratio, which translates from Latin as “The Restoration of Unity.” Right there, we see that the whole notion of denominationalism is wrong. And to their credit, the mostly Protestant thinkers involved in the “Baptism, Eucharist, Ministry” document from the World Council of Churches would agree. As most Christians—not just Roman Catholics—p …

Sometimes skeptics have claimed that the infancy narratives found in Matthew 1–2 and Luke 1–2 contradict each other. For example, it is pointed out that Luke has Mary living in Nazareth before going to Bethlehem, whereas in Matthew they don’t go to Nazareth until later. It has also been claimed that they contain historical errors, such as Matthew’s mention of Herod’s slaughter of boys in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:16) or Luke’s mention of the enrollment that took pla …

When a person is contemplating whether to become or remain Catholic, he may struggle to understand or to agree with certain theological or moral doctrines. He may be concerned about aspects of the Church’s liturgy or popular piety, or perhaps the clergy sex abuse scandals represent enormous roadblocks. Sometimes there are more personal and less rational hang-ups like the prospect of being anonymous in an enormous, impersonal parish. Or maybe it’s fear of going to confession.   …